


for you, i'll take the fall

by starrynigt



Series: the fdc (fake dating clusterfuck) au [2]
Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Fake/Pretend Relationship, First Kiss, M/M, Phone Calls & Telephones, Texting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-04
Updated: 2020-01-04
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:07:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22092286
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starrynigt/pseuds/starrynigt
Summary: Before he could stop himself, he was unlocking his phone and taking in the notifications it gave him with nothing short of horror.Fifty-five messages from Eddie? To say he was horrified was an understatement. His hands gripped the phone tightly as he debated internally whether or not to open up the messages, but ultimately his lack of impulse control won over and he hurriedly tapped the screen.
Relationships: Ben Hanscom/Beverly Marsh, Beverly Marsh & Stanley Uris, Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier, Richie Tozier & Stanley Uris
Series: the fdc (fake dating clusterfuck) au [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1590172
Comments: 8
Kudos: 63





	for you, i'll take the fall

**Author's Note:**

  * For [wormkinnie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/wormkinnie/gifts).



> once again, this is dedicated to the person that got me into IT in the first place and aided greatly in making this, providing me with both content and support. ily xan <3
> 
> also there r some parts of this that probably dont make sense cuz im writing this au VERY out of order but. shh

Normally, Richie was a pretty heavy sleeper. Staying up so late with Eddie all the time only made it so he slept in late as well, usually waking up around twelve or so. However, it seemed that today this body was determined to get him _out of his bed_ , because he jolted awake to the sound of his sister walking around. 

That _never_ happened.

A sense of dread overcame him as the events of last night--or, well, this morning--popped right back into his mind to torture him. He groaned loudly, throwing himself backwards onto his bed. _Why did I say that? Why couldn't I keep my stupid trashmouth shut?_ he lamented, biting his lip as he looked over at the clock. The bright red timestamp glared back at him.

_9:40? Jesus fuck, that's far too early for me. Damn it. Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck._

He tore his gaze away from the clock and forced it to where his phone was lying face-down on the nightstand next to his bed, a whole new wave of dread washing him. Richie stared at it for a moment, willing it to disappear, before he lunged forward and snatched it.

Before he could stop himself, he was unlocking his phone and taking in the notifications it gave him with nothing short of horror.

_Fifty-five messages from Eddie?_ To say he was horrified was an understatement. His hands gripped the phone tightly as he debated internally whether or not to open up the messages, but ultimately his lack of impulse control won over and he hurriedly tapped the screen.

Richie took a hand off his phone to grab for his glasses, which had been discarded on the bed at some point. After slipping them on, he closed his eyes once more to mentally prepare himself before finally opening them and reading the messages.

And then re-reading them.

And then re-reading them again.

His heartbeat quickened as he took in the words--no, the _confession_ laid out before his eyes. A flicker of hope sparked within him, and his hands started typing out responses on their own accord.

**to: spaghetti 😩😩🍝**

[9:47 AM] EDDIE ARE YOU PULLING MY DICK

**to: spaghetti 😩😩🍝**

[9:47 AM] CAUSE IF YOURE PULLING MY DICK IM ABOUT TO LOOK LIKE SUCH A DUMB PIEVE OF SHUT

**to: spaghetti 😩😩🍝**

[9:49 AM] EDDIE I KNOW YOU ARENT READING THIS 

**to: spaghetti 😩😩🍝**

[9:50 AM] FUCK

He ran his hands through his hair as he stood up, frantically glancing around the room. Richie pulled on the first semi-cohesive outfit he could find, knowing full well he looked like a disaster but not caring at all. There was only one thought going through his head: _Eddie may like me back._

**to: spaghetti 😩😩🍝**

[9:53 AM] OKAY SO IM COMING OVER SO IF YOU SEE THIS HEADS UP

A bit lackluster of a warning, but Richie got the sneaking suspicion that Eddie wasn't reading the messages anyways. Though he was definitely up by now, the odds of him actually looking at the texts were slim. He was probably having a panic attack, in all honesty.

That train of thought only made him move quicker, jumping out his window and hurriedly climbing onto his bike before he began pedaling the same path he'd gone down so many times over the years. 

Before he knew it, he was at Eddie's house (in record time, might he add), pulling his phone out of his pocket and shooting Eddie another text just in case. As he typed with one hand, he climbed with the other.

**to: spaghetti 😩😩🍝**

[9:59 AM] SURPRISE

**to: spaghetti 😩😩🍝**

[9:59 AM] OKAY IM AT THE WIDNWO

**to: spaghetti 😩😩🍝**

[10:00 AM] OK SO ITS HARD TO TEXG WHEILE IM CLIVMNGIG

After waiting a couple minutes, his patience wore out, which was probably sad given that it was a very short amount of time but also very telling of Richie as a person.

**to: spaghetti 😩😩🍝**

[10:02 AM] okay eddie open the curtain

Another two minutes went by, and as his panic grew increasingly strong, he couldn't help but have _intense doubts_ about the entire situation. He remembered that one time Stan had called Eddie during one of his and Richie's usual calls, and he'd immediately become awkward and--as much as it pained him to admit--jealous.

(As Richie rambled on about what had happened that day, he saw Eddie jump in surprise. He didn't have time to react before Eddie was interrupting him with, "hold on--I just got a call from someone?"

He could _feel_ his smile fall before he hurriedly plastered it back on, desperately hoping it didn't seem forced. "Oh, huh. Who's it from? Your girlfriend?" Richie laughed, thinking _please say no._

Eddie rolled his eyes, and relief flooded through Richie. "No, dickwad, it's just Stan. I'll be right back--I'm gonna see whats wrong."

The moment Eddie transferred the call, Richie pulled his phone close to his face, opening up his messages with Stan and sending him a text.

**to: stan the man 👀🍆👊**

[3:04 AM] fucking cockblock. 

**to: stan the man 👀🍆👊**

[3:04 AM] staniel youve Literally just betrayed me

**to: stan the man 👀🍆👊**

[3:04 AM] wingman my ASS. i have decided to never help you with romance again

**to: stan the man 👀🍆👊**

[3:06 AM] STAN I KNOW YOU SAW THIS

**to: stan the man 👀🍆👊**

[3:06 AM] RESPOND COWARD

**from: stan the man 👀🍆👊**

[3:16 AM] "cockblock" huh? does that mean you're into eddie? 

**from: stan the man 👀🍆👊**

[3:16 AM] you probably wouldnt have been much help anyways. not to hurt.

He squinted at the messages, cursing Stan for calling him out. As was the typical Richie Tozier move, he immediately deflected the question with a joke.

**to: stan the man 👀🍆👊**

[3:16 AM] no, dickwad, it was because of his mom

A minute went by, and it was blatantly clear Stan had no intention of responding. Richie knew his friend well enough that he could practically _sense_ the dismissal.

Still, he was gonna at least try to get a response.

**to: stan the man 👀🍆👊**

[3:17 AM] STAN

**to: stan the man 👀🍆👊**

[3:17 AM] ST A N

It took all the self-control he had not to call Stan right then and there, wanting him to _explain_ what was happening. Realistically, he knew Stan would never betray him, but he couldn't help but worry nonetheless.

He was just starting to type another message when a sudden voice sounded, causing him to drop his phone in surprise.

"What are you doing?" Eddie asked, amusement in his voice. Richie exhaled in relief when he realized it was only Eddie, though it was short-lived when his panic over the situation as a whole came back. "What? Oh, nothing. So, uh, what did Stan want?"

He shrugged. "I honestly don't know. I think it was just an accidental call, to be honest."

Immediately, the panic was erased. He knew Eddie wouldn't lie to him about anything like that, so he trusted that nothing had happened. Richie beamed at the camera. "Really? Weird. Okay, well, as I was saying--"

They talked for about five minutes before Eddie glanced at the top of his screen, squinting as he usually did when he got a notification. Richie paused, not knowing if Eddie wanted to take a moment to respond to it, only to be waved off. "It's just Bev," he explained, dismissing the notification. "Go on."

That was all the encouragement he needed, and he continued talking, hoping the obviously nervous disposition he'd had a couple seconds ago went unnoticed by Eddie.

It did.)

The intrusive memory reminded him that he had come here for _answers_ and by god he was going to get them. Hobbling awkwardly on the windowsill, he sent two final messages.

**to: spaghetti 😩😩🍝**

[10:04 AM] eddie

**to: spaghetti 😩😩🍝**

[10:05 AM] im gonna call you

He finally hit the call button, holding his phone up to his ear. As he waited for something, _anything,_ to happen, he realized he had no fucking clue what he'd do if Eddie actually answered. In about three seconds flat, he formulated what was barely a fragment of a plan. _Okay, I'll go all rom-com and surge forward and. Um. Fall onto Eddie and, like, I don't know... kiss him? Shit, this isn't gonna work. Planning is_ not _gonna work. Why isn't Eddie picking up the phone? He really needs to pick up the phone._

Richie gave up being subtle and knocked at the window, hissing "Eds, you little shit, I'm gonna fall off the sill." 

It seemed the mention of his impending fall was enough to finally spur a fucking _reaction_ , because suddenly the curtain was being pushed aside and the window was opening. His eyes immediately met Eddie's, who was staring at him with _so much_ in that one look that Richie thought he might fall off the outer edge of the window from the sheer gravity of said look if he didn't clamber into the room _right fucking now_.

After taking in how exhausted Richie was (in his defense, he literally came over as quick as he physically could), something evidently clicked for Eddie and he let him in. Richie hurriedly climbed through, standing there panting for a bit and staring back at Eddie.

The tense silence persisted for what was probably far too long until Richie swallowed, knowing if he didn't say something soon he'd lose all of the (admittedly scarce) courage he had. "Did you mean it?" he ended up asking in a small voice, nerves skyrocketing because _Eddie isn't moving at all and I don't know what to do._

Before Eddie could respond (he was afraid of what the response might be), he started a typical Trashmouth Patented ramble.

"Because if you didn't, that was a very dick move and--not gonna lie--I'm probably gonna cry because I've been in love with you from the day I met you and you really can't do this to me especially when you sent all those texts and MMPH--"

His words were cut off by Eddie groaning to himself, muttering something under his breath ("shut up, shut up, shut up," to be exact) before surging forward and kissing him. Richie froze, shock paralyzing his body. The only thought he could form was _hey, that was_ my _plan,_ before the reality of the situation caught up to him and he was pulling back, eyes wide.

He let out a nervous laugh, face flushed bright red. "WHOA, holy _shit,_ Eds! You, uh! You _kissed me_! With your fuckin _face!_ Just now!" His words were evidently too loud, because Eddie winced the same way he did whenever he was worried Richie was going to wake up his mom, before he _once again_ moved in and shut him up with _another_ kiss, this time grabbing his face in his hands in a way that was _so tender it hurt._

Richie couldn't help but worry that this was all just fake or some cruel joke but then he thought about how _Eddie kissed me, Eddie did_ that _he just went and grabbed my face and_ kissed _me and--so it's all okay. It's okay and I'm hugging Eddie so tightly (when did that happen?) and it's okay and it's_ real.

This time, Eddie was the one who pulled away, eyes scanning Richie's face. He reached out a hand and touched the scar on Richie's lip, a fond smile forming on the shorter boy's own lips. Richie watched him wordlessly, not able to do anything but take in the moment. He was suddenly so overwhelmed with emotion that he started nearly started crying, turning away from Eddie apologetically to hide his watering eyes.

"S-sorry, I just… I need a m-moment. I've been dreaming of this for _years_ , man." His voice cracked as he spoke, revealing his true emotions. He wanted to reach out, to pull Eddie back in, but _couldn't._ After all these years of straight-up yearning, he found himself physically unable to make the first move.

Luckily for him, Eddie was more impatient than he was, and pulled him into a hug. "Me too," he whispered, holding Richie close.

They stood there together for god knows how long until Richie, sniffling all the while, realized he needed to admit something. "I, um, was never dating Bev. Or, actually, anyone. I thought I could fake-date her to make you jealous, but she told me we had to end it, and you were dating Bill at that point so--"

"Wait, _what?_ " Eddie cut in, letting go of Richie and spinning him around to face him. His eyes were wide. "Are… are you serious?"

Tentatively, Richie nodded.

" _Oh my God._ " He burst into laughter, shoving his face into his hands. "You absolute fucking idiot--I wasn't dating Bill, either, I just wanted to make _you_ jealous, you dick. What the fuck."

Richie held up his hands, stepping back (grateful for the topic change because _feelings are hard)_. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, so you're telling me we were _both_ fake-dating our friends? Jesus christ." He paused, before adding with a smirk, "I wasn't fake-dating your mom, though."

Eddie shoved him back, letting out an unamused groan at the comment. Richie went with it, falling dramatically on his knees before Eddie. "Oh, so you like it rough, Eds? I can go with that," he winked.

"I--you-- _no."_ He stammered, kicking him. "Shut up. _Get up,_ actually. Both. Now."

"So bossy. Hey, that's fine, I can take being domin-- _oh."_ Richie barely had enough time to stand up and realize what was happening before Eddie's lips met his once more, shutting him up immediately. Eddie pulled away with a smirk. "Guess I figured out how to shut up the Trashmouth," he teased, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

The taller boy's face turned bright red. "Are you seriously going to, um, k-kiss me every time I start talking too much or you want me to shut up? Because I don't think that'll work _every time,_ Spaghetti, and-- _no, Eds, wait, I wasn't done talking--"_

It turned out that it _did,_ in fact, work every time. This became a result Eddie made full use of the next few days, when they decided they should tell the other Losers.

They had called a meeting with no explanation, just saying that they had an announcement to make, but Richie was still extremely nervous. _What if they don't approve? What if they hate me?_ he thought, knowing it was irrational but unable to stop the spiral. A squeeze of his hand brought him back to reality, and he glanced over to see Eddie looking at him with such a concerned expression that it helped calm him down because it was _Eddie_ holding his hand and _Eddie_ looking at him like he meant the world to him.

Richie took a deep breath, squeezing Eddie's hand to reassure him (and himself). _These are my friends. They wouldn't judge us at all. Eddie and Bill already fake-dated (BLERGH), anyways, so I know they're okay with me--with_ us. _Everything is okay._

With that in mind, he dropped down into the clubhouse with a shit-eatng grin as he loudly announced, "guess who finally got some sweet, sweet Kaspbrak clout--"

"WHAT THE FUCK? DON'T SAY IT LIKE THAT. SHUT UP," Eddie interjected, shoving him instinctively.

"--it was me. Specifically with Sonia," he continued right over Eddie, who was blushing very hard as he shoved his head into his hands. "IGNORE HIM. PLEASE. I BEG OF YOU ALL."

"Aw, Eds, you're jealous! That's so cute. I love my boyfriend."

"Weren't you _just_ saying you were dating my mom--" Eddie froze suddenly, whipping around to stare at Richie as he lowered his hands. "Wait, _boyfriend_?" 

_Oh, shit_ , he thought, face falling. "I--oh. Are we not--"

Eddie let out a sound that resembled a strangled bird as he rushed to speak over Richie. "No! We. We should. No, yeah, we _are_ . I just. I-- _ah._ " He put his face in his hands once more, his telltale red flush reaching the tips of his ears despite his best efforts.

Immediately, Richie's fear was replaced with smugness. "Aw, Eddie, baby, are you flustered? C'mere, gimme a kiss--"

"Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you--"

"That can be arranged--"

"AGH, OKAY, WE'RE LEAVING. BYE GUYS!" Eddie announced to the Losers as he grabbed Richie's arm and dragged him out. Richie sent the others a smug smile as he and Eddie left, waving cheerfully until they were both completely gone from sight.

The other Losers, who had been all but forgotten during that interaction, glanced around at one another awkwardly until Bev finally let out a loud yell. "Thank _God!_ Fucking finally," she cheered, elbowing Stan, who had a similarly grateful expression.

Actually, grateful wasn't the right word. Stan looked so overjoyed at this news that he was about to pass out. " _Finally,_ " he agreed, sighing with the energy of someone that had been putting up with his friend's pining bullshit for years and was sick of it (as was literally the case).

Ben and Mike shared an amused glance. "Yeah, I'm just glad Eddie will stop ranting to me about Richie's _lips,_ " Mike laughed, recalling the entire lip scar debacle.

"Wait, they liked each other?" Bill interjected, looking _very_ confused.

Stan stared at him in horror. "You mean you _weren't_ subject to their bullshit?"

Beverly and Stan shared a meaningful glance, obviously having remembered the same conversation they'd had that one fateful day.

("Okay, well, fuck you too then, Eddie. Just so you know, it was an accidental call anyways. You suck. I'm gonna go talk to Bev."

True to his word, he hung up the call and immediately dialed Bev. "Bev, _help,"_ he started before explaining the situation.

Bev laughed. "Wait, wait, wait, so Richie was spamming you angrily while Eddie was confused out of his mind as you, his _close friend_ , call him? Because it's 'when richie and him talk'?"

Stan groaned, sounding absolutely done. "That is correct, Bever--HE JUST CALLED ME A COCKBLOCK OHMYGOD."

"Are you serious?"

" _Yeah._ "

"Ask him if that means he's into Eddie," she grinned, knowing full well that they both knew the answer to that question already.

Stan did, squinting his eyes impossibly small at the absurd response he got. "...he says 'no, it was because of Eddie's _mom.'_ "

"What does that even _mean?"_ she snorted.

" _I don't know,_ Bev. I'm so done with all of this. He's _still_ texting me, holy _fuck_."

Bev sighed loudly, looking just as defeated as Stan. "Just ignore him, at this point. Let him suffer. I'll send Eddie a text about all this, too, just to stir things up a bit."

They both had put up with an absurd amount of bullshit from their friends, especially after the whole FDC (Fake Dating Clusterfuck, as Bev and Stan had named it) incident, and had learned that trying to stop it was futile.

"Good idea. Oh, also, did you see them interacting at the movies today? Because--")

Their gaze broke as they turned back to Bill before replying, "yes, Bill. Yes they did" in perfect tandem.

"Also, Ben and I have been dating for, like, half a year, by the way," Bev added. 

"WHAT?" Bill yelled, throwing his hands in the air. "What the fuck? What have I been missing?"

The others burst into laughter, blatantly ignoring Bill's confusion. Quickly, Bill joined in, unable to stop himself from laughing at his own obliviousness. Outside of the clubhouse, Richie and Eddie were laughing as well as they ran back to Richie's house, creating a perfect moment where every single member of their gang were all happy and laughing together, even though they weren't all at the same location.

As was the Loser way.


End file.
